Department for Transport

Department for Transport: Hotels

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department’s payment to K.I.T Group France on 10 August 2022 for attendance at the International Astronautical Conference 2022, how many nights’ accommodation were included in the cost of that payment; at which hotel was that accommodation provided; and for how many individuals.

Jesse Norman: The payment to K.I.T Group France covered the registration only for two members of staff for the International Astronautical Conference and did not include the cost for three nights' accommodation at the Citadines Maine Montparnasse Hotel in Paris, which was booked through the Department’s travel booking portal.

Department for Transport: Electronic Purchasing Card Solution

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his Department’s publication of government procurement spending over £500 for September 2022, what materials were purchased from Brit Shop on 13 September 2022.

Jesse Norman: 350 gift bags were purchased from Brit shop for participants at a UK hosted breakfast reception with international partners as part of the United Nations 41st International Civil Aviation Organisation Council.

Northern Ireland Office

Integrated Schools: Northern Ireland

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if his Department will take steps to extend Fresh Start funding for capital projects in integrated schools.

Mr Steve Baker: I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave on 16 November 2022 (UIN 83796):https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2022-11-09/83796

Integrated Schools: Northern Ireland

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the number of places in integrated schools in Northern Ireland.

Mr Steve Baker: The Government firmly believes every parent should have a proper choice of schools for their children, which is not reflected in the current level of integrated education provision standing at 7% of school places in Northern Ireland. The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement is very clear that greater integration within education is an essential aspect of the reconciliation process. For this reason, as part of the Stormont House and Fresh Start Agreements, the Government committed to provide up to £500 million of funding to support shared and integrated education capital projects. This work is actively supporting the construction of 23 integrated schools and five shared campuses, in addition to a further £2 million in programme funding announced last year to support the development of integrated education.

Integrated Schools: Northern Ireland

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Shared Learning Together programme to cover Integrated Education in Northern Ireland, in the context of the passing of the Integrated Education Act (2022).

Mr Steve Baker: The Government welcomed the successful passage of the Integrated Education Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 in the Northern Ireland Assembly. This will help progress the commitments in the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement in respect of greater integration in education. The delivery of the Shared Learning Together programme is a devolved matter, for which the NI Department of Education is responsible.

Department of Health and Social Care

NHS Trusts: Expenditure

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the total spend on postage was by NHS trusts in England in each of the last five years.

Will Quince: Data on total spend on postage by NHS trusts in England is not held centrally and is held locally by individual trusts.

Hospitals: Discharges

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to ensure that NHS Trusts are complying with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 when discharging people from hospital.

Helen Whately: Updated statutory guidance on discharge is due to be published shortly. The guidance includes information on the application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.In the meantime, NHS trusts should continue to follow the existing hospital discharge and community support guidance and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice where relevant.

Social Services: Pay

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that local authorities make provisions to increase the level of pay for social care staff.

Helen Whately: Most care workers are employed by private sector providers who set their pay and terms and conditions. Local authorities work with care providers to determine fee rates, which should take account of wage costs, based on local market conditions.

Health Services: Empty Property

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had recent discussions with local authorities on the potential merits of using (a) empty care homes and (b) other unoccupied properties as step-down facilities to help reduce pressure in the NHS; and if he will provide funding to use these properties for this purpose.

Helen Whately: Departmental ministers, including the Secretary of State, are meeting with leaders from all 42 integrated care systems, including local authority leaders, to understand the pressures they are facing, and how the department can help them. Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for considering the differing demands and requirements for health and care services in their locality and then planning, commissioning and paying for services from appropriate providers.On 9 January 2023, the Government committed a further £200 million to fund short-term National Health Service step-down care packages. ICBs, working closely with local authorities, will use this to purchase places in care homes and other settings, such as hospices, as well as to help fund wrap-around primary and community health services to support patients’ recovery.

Diseases: Health Services

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding has been allocated for the development and implementation of the Major Diseases Strategy.

Helen Whately: Funding for the development of the Strategy will come out of the Department’s existing funding allocation. This funding is not separately identified.

Department of Health and Social Care: Equality

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure his Department complies with section 2.1.6 of the Civil Service Management Code; and whether that monitoring data gathered is shared with union representatives.

Will Quince: The Department collects data to enable monitoring of our policies and action plans in compliance with 2.1.6 of the Civil Service Management Code. The Department holds regular meetings with the trade unions on a monthly basis where routine information is shared. In addition, trade unions can access a range of Human Resources information published on the Department's intranet. The Department also publishes detailed workforce data covering age, gender, ethnic origin, disability, and other protected characteristics as part of the Department’s Public Sector Equality Duty Report that is publicly available on the GOV.UK website.

NHS: Workplace Pensions

Wes Streeting: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, in what month he expects changes to NHS pensions caps to be implemented.

Will Quince: The Department recently consulted on new retirement flexibilities for members of the 1995 Section of the NHS Pension Scheme, including proposals for partial retirement, pensionable re-employment, and the permanent removal of the 16-hour rule.We will publish our response to the consultation shortly but expect that partial retirement will be implemented from 1 October 2023 and pensionable re-employment and the permanent removal of the 16-hour rule from 1 April 2023.The suspension of abatement rules for members with Special Class Status has been extended to 31 March 2025.

Department of Health and Social Care: Expenditure

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his Department's publication of data for expenditure over £25,000 in November 2022, what goods were being stored for his Department by (a) Kuehne and Nagel Ltd and (b) Uniserve Ltd. as of 31 December 2022; what quantities of goods were being stored by each company; and in which locations were they being stored.

Will Quince: As of 31 December 2022, 118 million items of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) were being stored by Kuehne and Nagel Ltd in China and 1,446 million items of PPE were being stored by Uniserve Ltd in sites across England.

Dental Services: Standards

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Professional Standards Authority's Periodic review, GDC-2021/2022, what discussions his Department has had with the General Dental Council to help ensure the Council meets all 18 standards in that review.

Neil O'Brien: The Department is aware of the findings of the Professional Standards Authority’s (PSA) 2020/21 review of the performance of the General Dental Council (GDC) and notes that the GDC is putting measures in place to ensure it meets the PSA’s 18 Standards of Good Regulation in its next review. The Department welcomes the action that the GDC is taking and meets with it regularly to discuss a range of issues relevant to its work.The Department is reforming the regulatory frameworks of the healthcare professional regulators to enable them to respond to changes in the health and care workforce whilst maintaining public protection. Officials are working with the regulators on legislative changes to allow greater flexibility to modernise fitness to practise processes and improve efficiency.

Supported Housing: Regulation

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's press release entitled £53 million cash boost to improve housing support for drug and alcohol recovery published 3 February 2023, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on plans to improve regulation of supported exempt housing.

Neil O'Brien: We regularly engage across Government on this issue and will continue to engage as the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Bill progresses through Parliament.

St James' Hospital Portsmouth

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential (a) social and (b) environmental impact of the sale of St James' Hospital in Portsmouth.

Will Quince: The 2017 Masterplan Framework Document for the sale of the St James’ Hospital site (excluding that part which has already been acquired by Homes England), a copy of which has been placed in the Library in answer to Question 138428, contains an Environmental report and sets out the community benefits. As part of the subsequent planning application process with Portsmouth County Council there are a number of reports and documents online which detail the different environmental, social and community considerations of the proposals; these are available at the following link:https://publicaccess.portsmouth.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?previousCaseType=Property&keyVal=Q5N8TLMO0N200&previousCaseNumber=000TIXMOBU000&previousCaseUprn=001775048808&activeTab=summary&previousKeyVal=001RZKMOLI000

Dentistry: Migrant Workers

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that overseas dentists are able to (a) register as dental care professionals and (b) sit the overseas registration examination.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to help tackle delays in overseas dentists being able to (a) register as dental care professionals and (b) sit the overseas registration examination.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his planned timetable is for implementing his policy on not registering overseas dentists as dental care professionals until they have passed the overseas registration examination.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for overseas dentists to sit the overseas registration examination in the latest period for which data is available; and whether he is taking steps with the General Dental Council to help reduce these waiting times.

Neil O'Brien: The Department does not hold the latest data on the average waiting time for overseas qualified dentists waiting to take the Overseas Registration Exam (ORE). This data is held by the General Dental Council (GDC).   The Department has worked with the GDC to develop and consult on legislative proposals to allow the regulator greater flexibility to amend its existing international registration processes and explore alternative registration pathways as it considers appropriate. We aim to introduce the legislative changes in February 2023.   It will be for the GDC, as an independent regulator, to decide how best to use the flexibility that these proposals allow. Following the legislative changes, we understand the GDC will consult on changes to how the ORE operates, which would enable it to increase the number of dentists it can assess, potentially allowing overseas dentists to join its register more quickly. The Government and the GDC recognise dentists and dental care professionals (DCPs) as distinct professions. The Order amends the GDC’s legislation so that international dentist qualifications cannot on their own be used in support of an application to the DCP register, regardless of whether an applicant has sat the ORE. This change, which will apply once the Order comes into force, ensures consistency between the United Kingdom and international routes, since qualified dentists cannot apply to join the DCP register using their dentistry qualification.   The amendment enables the GDC to process applications from dentists to join the register as DCPs that are received up until the day before the Order comes into force. This ensures that any 'live' DCP title applications submitted before the legislation is passed will be processed.

Health Services: Departmental Coordination

Liz Twist: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Major Conditions Strategy will be delivered by multiple Government departments.

Helen Whately: The Department of Health and Social Care will deliver the Major Conditions Strategy in consultation with NHS England and other Government Departments.

Direct Payments: Minimum Wage

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with relevant stakeholders on the adequacy of the direct payment system to enable users to pay the minimum wage.

Helen Whately: There have been no specific discussions on this matter.

Hospitals: Discharges

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has written to NHS trusts about compliance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 when discharging people from hospital.

Helen Whately: The Department has not recently written to NHS Trusts about compliance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 when discharging people from hospital.Professionals must always comply with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 when arranging a patient’s discharge from hospital, including having due regard to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice.Updated statutory guidance on discharge is due to be published shortly, which will include information on the application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. NHS Trusts should continue to follow the existing hospital discharge and community support guidance, which includes guidance on using the Mental Capacity Act 2005 during the discharge process.

Care Homes: Bradford East

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of residential care homes that have closed in Bradford East constituency since May 2010.

Helen Whately: The Department does not collect data pertaining to care home closures. The below data has been recorded by the Care Quality Commission.Since 2010, four nursing homes and 10 residential homes have been unregistered in Bradford East constituency, 14 in total.

St James' Hospital Portsmouth

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason separate parcels of land at St James' Hospital in Portsmouth are being disposed of separately and not together.

Will Quince: In 2013 National Health Service stakeholders agreed a business plan to dispose of the land and buildings. NHS Property Services (NHSPS) engaged with Portsmouth City Council (PCC) on the development of a Masterplan which included the adjacent landowners Portsmouth University. PCC invited Homes England to purchase part of the hospital site to provide affordable homes; this sale transaction completed in 2015. The intention was for this Phase one to be developed before the remainder of the site (‘Phase two’) became vacant. NHSPS commenced marketing for the Phase two site in June 2018, inviting offers on an unconditional and conditional on planning basis. Bidders were invited to offer for the entire property comprising the Grade two hospital site and Forest Lodge, or individually for the hospital and lodge. The lead bidder expressed an interest in acquiring the main hospital site, whilst another developer sought to acquire Forest Lodge, which was purchased separately and has now been successfully developed into a care home for the Royal Naval Benevolent Trust, now known as Admiral Jellicoe House. The other developer submitted its planning application for the main hospital site to PCC in January 2020; PCC has yet to determine the planning application.

Department of Health and Social Care: Vehicles

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) fossil fuel-, (b) electric- and (c) hybrid-powered road-legal vehicles their Department purchased in the last 24 months.

Will Quince: The Department has not purchased any vehicles in the last 24 months.

NHS Trusts: Repairs and Maintenance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding has been allocated to (a) Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn NHS Foundation Trust, (b) North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, (c) West Suffolk NHS Trust, (d) Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and (e) Frimely Health NHS Foundation Trust to remediate roofs made from Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete.

Will Quince: We have publicly committed to eradicating Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) from the National Health Service estate by 2035 and protecting patient and staff safety in the interim period, with the NHS approaching this on a ‘risk basis’, prioritising NHS trusts of concern. We have allocated a total of £685 million for mitigation works in all the affected trusts up to 2024-25.We are allocating funding annually, based on NHS trust plans and delivery progress. The specific funding for future years has not yet been finalised.We recognise the need to replace RAAC in the worst affected trusts by 2030 and as such are holding discussions with trusts on a standardised approach and how this could fit with the New Hospital Programme.NHS Trust2021/2022 (£m)2022/2023 (£m)*Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn NHS Foundation Trust20.730.8North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust1320West Suffolk NHS Trust3022.7Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust2229.7Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust7.59.1* 2022/23 actual spend may vary once the figures are confirmed at financial year end

Department for Education

Children: Social Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data her Department holds on the levels of (a) suicide and (b) attempted suicide of parents who have had their children permanently removed from their care.

Claire Coutinho: Every suicide is a tragedy. Supporting the mental health and wellbeing of children, young people, and adults, including suicide prevention, is a government priority.We want children to grow up in loving, safe and stable families, where they can flourish. One of the aims of our reform programme across children’s social care, as set out in ‘Stable Homes, Build on Love’ is to keep more children safely with their families where this is possible. Our Family Help reforms are central to delivering this and will provide effective and meaningful support for families. It will feature multi-disciplinary teams that work with their local partners to meet the whole needs of a family.The department does not hold this information centrally. Local authorities provide information on looked after children through the SSDA903 annual return, however, this does not include information on the family circumstances of looked after children.

Children: Social Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason she has decided to introduce twelve pilots for the planned reforms to children's social care.

Claire Coutinho: The department’s strategy sets out our vision for the future of the children’s social care system and how we will achieve transformational change. Over the next two years, the department plans to address urgent issues facing children and families, laying the foundations for whole system reform. Following this, we will scale up tested and developed approaches and aim to bring forward legislation.Through Pathfinders, the department will work closely with local areas to test and learn how we deliver complex operational changes effectively, including a new integrated model of Family Help. The necessary reform needs to be balanced with the need to scale evidence-based interventions safely and effectively. The department’s approach addresses both needs.The department has a clear ambition to improve all children’s services across England. Reforms over the next two years will impact all local authorities, including the national framework, providing support and training to kinship carers, and supporting social workers with training.On the day of publication, the department wrote to all local authorities to outline our approach for reform and highlight actions to consider taking now in preparation for wider reform.

Children: Social Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how she will select which local authorities host pilots for her proposed reforms to children's social care.

Claire Coutinho: The department is taking a ‘test and learn’ approach with our Pathfinder programmes covering the most complex areas of reform. This is to understand how to scale reforms effectively and ensure it continues to meet our vision for the system.The local areas selected to engage in our first Pathfinders will play a valuable role in informing how the department implements reforms and take an active part in designing how we deliver new policy. Pathfinder areas will have a broad range of characteristics so the department observes how to best implement reforms across the country.The department is aware that we must balance the need for selected areas to have the capacity and willingness to deliver reform at pace, with openness and fairness. We will publish further details in due course.

Childcare: Fees and Charges

Mr Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is taking steps to ensure that parents are able to access 30 hours of free childcare without having to purchase extra hours.

Mr Jacob Rees-Mogg: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will will make an estimate of the number of parents who are unable to access their entitlement to free childcare because the only available places are at nurseries that require the purchase of additional hours as a condition of accessing the free hours.

Claire Coutinho: The department’s statutory guidance for local authorities advises that providers can charge for additional hours or services outside of the free entitlement hours, but this cannot be a condition for a parent to access a place. The guidance is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/718179/Early_education_and_childcare-statutory_guidance.pdf.The department does not collect data on parents who choose not to take up a place due to additional charges.Parents who want to access their free hours entitlement without paying for additional costs should contact their local authority if they are having difficulty finding a place. Local authorities have a statutory duty to secure sufficient 30 hours free childcare places under the Childcare (Free of Charge for Working Parents) (England) Regulations 2022. The regulations are available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2022/1134/made/data.pdf.

Children in Care

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps with local authorities to help reduce the number of moves made by children in the care system.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to research by the charity Become on the number of children in the care system in England moved each day, what steps she is taking to improve the safety and stability of children in the care system.

Claire Coutinho: The Department believes that every child should experience a stable loving home during their time in care. There are many factors that contribute to placement instability and we are now collecting data to help understand the reason for placement changes. The data is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/fast-track/53b32118-528e-4015-777b-08dab100bfc2.It is important to note that some placement moves are necessary, particularly when part of a plan to find a longer term or permanent home for a child. Planned moves are often in the best interests of the child. A first placement may be organised at short notice due to an emergency and may not be a perfect fit, or a child may need a short-term placement for specialist care.To improve placement stability, the department has invested in the Mockingbird Family Model, which is an innovative approach to strengthening the delivery of foster care and reducing placement breakdown. Since 2014, the department has provided over £8 million to help a total of 58 local authorities across the country embed the Mockingbird programme. £1.7 million of this was provided as part of the Covid Regional Recovery Fund.Recognising the urgency of action in placement sufficiency, the department will prioritise working with local authorities to recruit more foster carers. This will include pathfinder local recruitment campaigns that build towards a national programme, to help ensure those carers approved are the right match for children coming into care and children have access to the right placements at the right time.

Food Technology

Lee Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing compulsory home economics lessons in schools.

Nick Gibb: In 2014 the Department introduced ‘cooking and nutrition’ into the design and technology curriculum, which is compulsory for pupils aged 5-14.Pupils are taught how to cook with an emphasis on savoury dishes, and how to apply the principles of healthy eating and nutrition. In 2016, the Department introduced a food preparation and nutrition GCSE. This GCSE requires pupils to understand and apply the principles of food science, nutrition, and healthy eating when preparing and cooking food.

Childcare

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding her Department has provided to families with earnings (a) below and (b) above £100,000 for childcare in the last 12 months.

Claire Coutinho: The government provides a range of early years entitlements for 2, 3 and 4-year-old children in England.2-year-old children from disadvantaged families, with working parents on low incomes, and in receipt of certain benefits (earning less than £15,400 and in receipt of Universal Credit or earning less than £16,190 and receiving tax credits) are entitled to 15 hours of childcare per week.The universal entitlement of 15 hours per week of free early education is available for all 3- and 4-year-olds in England and has no earnings threshold.An additional 15 hours per week entitlement, also known as 30 hours free childcare, is available for 3 and 4-year-old children of working parents who earn at least the equivalent of 16 hours per week at National Minimum or Living Wage (currently just over £152 per week / £7,900 per year), and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year. In a two-parent family, both parents must meet the above thresholds, unless one partner receives certain benefits, such as Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance, Carer’s Allowance or contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance. In a single-parent household the single parent must meet the threshold.The early years pupil premium is available for eligible 3 and 4-year-old children in receipt of the universal 15 hours entitlement, from disadvantaged families on certain benefits or low incomes. 3 and 4-year-old children receiving the universal 15 hours and children’s disability living allowance may be eligible for the disability access fund.The following table shows government spending on childcare entitlements for the 2022/23 financial year:2-year-old entitlement:£433,421,1393-4-year-old universal entitlement:£2,288,923,1493-4-year-old additional entitlement for children of working parents:£894,104,384Early years Pupil Premium:£39,419,076Disability Access Fund:£18,387,200Total*£3,674,254,948 *As published in the initial early years funding allocations of the dedicated schools grant, which can be accessed here: https://skillsfunding.service.gov.uk/view-latest-funding/national-funding-allocations/DSG/2022-to-2023. Final allocations for the financial year 2022/23 will be published in July 2023.3 and 4-year-old children of parents each earning in excess of £100,000 per year may be eligible for the universal 15 hours entitlement and for Disability Access Fund. The department does not hold data on what proportion of the spend on those entitlements is paid in relation to those children.

Schools: Putney

Fleur Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Putney constituency had at least one construction element in (a) condition grade C and (b) condition grade D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Nick Gibb: The Condition Data Collection (CDC) is one of the largest and most comprehensive data collection programmes in the UK’s public sector. It collected data on the building condition of government funded schools in England. It provides a robust evidence base to enable the Department to target capital funding for maintaining and rebuilding school buildings.The key, high level findings of the CDC programme were published in May 2021 in the ‘Condition of School Buildings Survey: Key Findings’ report. This is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/989912/Condition_of_School_Buildings_Survey_CDC1_-_key_findings_report.pdf.Individual CDC reports have been shared with every school and their responsible body to use alongside their existing condition surveys to plan maintenance schedules and investment plans. The Department plans to publish detailed school level CDC data. The data is being prepared and will be published as soon as possible.Well maintained, safe school buildings are a priority for the Department. Our funding is directed both to maintaining the condition of the school estate and rebuilding schools. The Department has allocated over £13 billion for improving the condition of schools since 2015, including £1.8 billion committed this financial year.The ten year School Rebuilding Programme (SRP) is condition led. 400 of the 500 available places on the programme have been provisionally allocated. A list of these schools and the methodology used to select them is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-rebuilding-programme-schools-in-the-programme.Of the 400 so far selected, none are in Putney constituency. There are two schools in Wandsworth local authority.The 239 schools announced in December 2022 will enter delivery at a rate of approximately 50 per year, over a five year period from 2023. The Department is currently undertaking due diligence on these schools prior to scheduling them, with schools prioritised according to the condition of their buildings, readiness to proceed, and efficiency of delivery. The scope and funding for each project will be confirmed following detailed feasibility studies and condition surveys of buildings.Where a school identifies significant safety issues with a building, that cannot be managed within local resources, the Department considers additional support on a case-by-case basis. This includes applications for Urgent Capital Support (UCS) from eligible institutions. Schools eligible for Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) can apply for UCS where there are urgent health and safety issues that threaten school closure and cannot wait until the next CIF bidding round.

Children: Social Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential effect of piloting reforms to children’s social care in 12 areas on the recruitment and retention of social workers in neighbouring authorities.

Claire Coutinho: The department is currently designing the programme specifications for our Pathfinders.The Families First for Children Pathfinder will involve up to 12 local areasPilots testing Family Network Support Packages will take place in seven local areas starting from summer 2023The Regional Care Cooperative Pathfinder will take place in two local areas from spring 2024.The department will take learnings from other local initiatives, including those funded through our Children’s Social Care Innovation programme, to minimise impact on neighbouring authorities.The department’s reforms across all local authorities over the next two years will aim to boost social worker supply, encourage social workers to stay in practice for longer and make sure they feel valued. We are investing more that £50 million every year over this Spending Review period to recruit, train and develop child and family social workers.

Mothers: Childcare

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of potential impact of a mother and baby care arrangement on supporting a mother in the raising of their baby or child.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the availability of care arrangements for mother and baby and if this is something that she is looking at.

Claire Coutinho: Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 is clear that local authorities have a duty to provide services to children in need in their area. Where appropriate, this could include support for mothers who need help raising their babies.Where there are concerns about the safety of a child, statutory guidance ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ (2018) clarifies local authorities’ responsibilities for leading the assessments of children in need and making child protection enquiries. It sets out that local authorities, with their partners, should develop and publish local protocols for assessment.Wherever possible, social workers will ensure that babies remain with their birth parents in residential family centres and supported environments, unless there is a safeguarding risk to either mother or child. Where a safeguarding concern exists and a local authority determines that a child is at risk of harm from its parent, it may take the action to remove the child.On 2 February 2023 the department published ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’, a strategy for ambitious reform to transform children’s social care. We will invest £200 million to address those issues facing children and families, laying the foundations for whole system reform to provide more and better support to families.

Schools: Admissions

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help secure school places for children without guardians.

Claire Coutinho: Children without guardians are among the most vulnerable in our society. The department knows that the vast majority of children taken into local authority care have experienced abuse or neglect and therefore require additional support. Wherever possible, they should be admitted to the school which is best able to meet their needs.For this reason, school admission authorities have been required to give looked after children highest priority in their admission arrangements since 2007, and these children should be placed in good or outstanding schools.The School Admissions Code also requires each local authority to have a Fair Access Protocol in place to ensure that any unplaced and vulnerable children are allocated a school place as quickly as possible. It also gives local authorities the power to direct the admission authority for any maintained school in England (other than a school for which they are the admissions authority) to admit a child who is looked after by the local authority, even when the school is full.

Special Educational Needs

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether parents who are required to provide schools with GP letters for a child with SEND are able to charge the cost of that letter back to the school.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department provides to local authorities on payment for letters from a GP required by a school about a child with special educational needs and disability.

Claire Coutinho: In cases where a school has requested medical evidence to support an illness absence, a GP letter is not required. In addition to a doctor’s note, medical evidence can take the form of a prescription, medication, a referral from a clinic, appointment cards and other similar documents.The department’s working together to improve school attendance guidance for schools and local authorities, states that in the majority of cases a parent’s notification that their chid is ill can be accepted without question or concern. Schools should not routinely request that parents provide medical evidence to support illness, as it places additional pressure on health professionals, particularly if the illness is one that does not require treatment by a health professional. This guidance can be accessed here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1099677/Working_together_to_improve_school_attendance.pdf.The guidance also expects schools and local authorities to recognise that pupils with long term illnesses or special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) may face greater barriers to attendance than their peers. Schools and local authorities are expected to be mindful of the barriers pupils with SEND may face and put additional support in place where necessary to help them access their full-time education. Schools and local authorities should be sensitive and avoid stigmatising pupils and parents and talk to them to understand what they think would help improve their attendance and develop individual approaches that meet an individual pupil’s specific needs.

Schools: Penistone and Stocksbridge

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Penistone and Stocksbridge constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Peterborough constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Plymouth, Moor View constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Rother Valley constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Shipley constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Southampton, Itchen constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Stevenage constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Truro and Falmouth constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Wolverhampton North East constituency had at least one construction element in condition grade (a) C and (b) D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (i) have received funding and (ii) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.

Nick Gibb: The Condition Data Collection (CDC) is one of the largest and most comprehensive data collection programmes in the UK’s public sector. It collected data on the building condition of government funded schools in England. It provides a robust evidence base to enable the Department to target capital funding for maintaining and rebuilding school buildings.The key, high level findings of the CDC programme were published in May 2021 in the ‘Condition of School Buildings Survey: Key Findings’ report. This is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/989912/Condition_of_School_Buildings_Survey_CDC1_-_key_findings_report.pdf.Individual CDC reports have been shared with every school and their responsible body to use alongside their existing condition surveys to plan maintenance schedules and investment plans. The Department plans to publish detailed school level CDC data. The data is being prepared and will be published as soon as possible.Well maintained, safe school buildings are a priority for the Department. Our funding is directed both to maintaining the condition of the school estate and rebuilding schools. The Department has allocated over £13 billion for improving the condition of schools since 2015, including £1.8 billion committed this financial year.The ten year School Rebuilding Programme (SRP) is condition led. 400 of the 500 available places on the programme have been provisionally allocated. A list of these schools and the methodology used to select them is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-rebuilding-programme-schools-in-the-programme.The following table shows the constituencies specified that have schools or colleges selected for SRP:Parliamentary constituency Schools selected for SRPPenistone and StocksbridgeWindmill Hill Primary School, announced December 2022Rother ValleyWales High School, announced July 2022ShipleyShipley CofE Primary School, announced December 2022The 239 schools announced in December 2022 will enter delivery at a rate of approximately 50 per year, over a five year period from 2023. The Department is currently undertaking due diligence on these schools prior to scheduling them, with schools prioritised according to the condition of their buildings, readiness to proceed, and efficiency of delivery. The scope and funding for each project will be confirmed following detailed feasibility studies and condition surveys of buildings.Where a school identifies significant safety issues with a building, that cannot be managed within local resources, the Department considers additional support on a case-by-case basis. This includes applications for Urgent Capital Support (UCS) from eligible institutions. Schools eligible for Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) can apply for UCS where there are urgent health and safety issues that threaten school closure and cannot wait until the next CIF bidding round.

Children and Young People: Care Homes

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has plans to make changes to the private residential care sector for children and young people.

Claire Coutinho: Every child in care deserves to live in a home that meets their needs and keeps them safe. local authorities are responsible for ensuring there are enough places for their children in care and the department is supporting them to do this.Whilst there are a variety of different types of providers who operate in this sector and who play a vital role in providing homes for children in care, it is not right that local authorities occasionally pay too much for placements. The Competition and Markets Authority study into Children’s Social Care placements identified a lack of placements of the right kind in the right places for children.As set out in our Implementation Strategy, ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’, we are seeking to rebalance the market through investing in foster care and by providing £259 million of capital funding over the next parliament, to help local authorities develop more of their own children’s homes.The department is keen to avoid ‘profiteering’ from any provider and wants to grow capacity. That is why we are supporting local authorities to expand their provision, which will reduce reliance on the private sector without reducing the number of placements. Our proposals on regional commissioning will also give regions greater buying power and put them in a stronger position when negotiating with private providers.To ensure the resilience of both independent fostering agencies and children’s homes providers, the department will work with Ofsted and the sector to develop plans for a financial oversight regime. This will allow for greater financial transparency across the sector, for example on ownership, debt structures and profit making preventing sudden market exit, and ensuring that children continue to receive the care that they need.

Children: Social Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to help support local authorities to provide family-help models of multi-agency interventions outside of her Department's pilot projects.

Claire Coutinho: Alongside the £45 million Families First for Children Pathfinders, the department will support all local authorities to take steps to move closer to our vision for Family Help. We will do this by building a skilled and effective family help workforce. By 2024 the department will publish a Knowledge and Skills Statement for Family Help workers. This will be an important part of valuing and building confidence in Family Help workers, which will set out a common framework of the skills and knowledge required to do the job.The department will hold a consultation in spring 2023 to determine whether there should be broader range of family practitioners who can work as ‘case holders’ for vulnerable children and their families. This will enable the right people with the right skills to help provide families and children currently supported under Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 with the best possible support.The department is working closely with other government departments including the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on the Supporting Families programme to continue delivering positive outcomes for all children and families. The 2021 Budget announced around a 40% cash-terms uplift in funding for the programme, taking total planned investment to £695 million over the 2021 Spending Review. Together we will continue to share best practice, facilitate peer support between areas, and place a greater focus on achieving the reform vision in both policy and delivery work with authorities.The department is supporting the Department of Work and Pensions to improve social workers' ability to use forms of welfare support to help families facing material deprivation.

Students: Ukraine

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the feasibility of Ukrainian refugees who came to the UK through the Homes for Ukraine scheme completing their studies (a) in the UK and (b) remotely without access to Student Finance.

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on ensuring Ukrainian refugees who arrived through the Homes for Ukraine scheme and who are studying remotely meet the eligibility requirements for Universal Credit.

Robert Halfon: Universities in Ukraine are striving to maintain the education of their students under extremely challenging conditions. This includes through the provision of online distance learning for students enrolled at Ukrainian universities who now live in another country, including in the UK. The department encourages students to speak with their education provider in Ukraine to understand what support is available for them to continue their studies at their Ukrainian provider. This includes those studying through the UK twinning programme which the government announced funding to support in June 2022: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-uk-package-offers-a-lifeline-to-ukrainian-researchers-and-entrepreneurs. The programme provides support to Ukrainian universities by establishing partnerships with those in the UK.Student finance is available only for eligible students studying a course provided predominantly in the UK by a UK higher education provider, including Ukrainian students who have enrolled at UK universities. In England, those studying via distance learning are, in general, not eligible to receive student loans to cover maintenance costs. This is also the case for Ukrainian students in England, who are studying via distance learning.Further information on support for Ukrainian students continuing courses online from the UK, including eligibility for Universal Credit can be found here: https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/support-for-students-from-ukraine-in-uk-higher-education/.

Care Leavers

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is taking steps to help ensure that all care leavers have access to at least two secure and trusted relationships with adults when leaving care.

Claire Coutinho: As set out in the Children’s Social Care Implementation Strategy: Stable Homes, Built on Love, the department’s mission is that by 2027, every care-experienced child and young person will feel they have strong, loving relationships in place. Throughout the implementation of our reforms to care, we will prioritise children’s loving and safe relationships, both with their families and with care givers.The department will provide over £30 million in the next two years to significantly increase the number of local authorities with family finding, befriending and mentoring programmes, including Lifelong Links. These programmes help children in care and care leavers to identify and connect with the important people in their lives and create new relationships.The department will also increase the accessibility and take-up of the Independent Visitors offer by working with the sector to reinforce current good practice and developing standards for Independent Visitor services.

Children: Social Services

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that all local authorities are fully briefed about her plans for reforming Children's Social Care; and whether authorities outside of the formal pilot areas will be able to trial these reforms.

Claire Coutinho: The department actively engages with local authority stakeholders, including the Local Government Association and Association of Directors of Children’s Services, through our Regions Group and wider stakeholder teams to ensure policy reforms are developed and implemented collaboratively. This will continue throughout the 14 week consultation period for Stable Homes, Built on Love. More information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/childrens-social-care-stable-homes-built-on-love.One aspect of the reform programme is laying the foundations for future reform, through Pathfinders. The department is also taking wide ranging actions to address urgent issues in the system nationally and help all areas move in the direction of our reforms. For instance, we will consult on new Multi-Agency Child Protection Standards in spring 2023 and provide £24 million to expand our recruitment and retention programme for foster carers so that foster care is available for more children who need it.The department does not want local authorities and partners to feel the need to wait for permission to act now and the Implementation Strategy gives examples of actions that areas can take now to move in the direction of reform. The Children’s Social Care National Framework, published for consultation alongside the strategy, also sets in one place principles for practice and outcomes that should be achieved so children, young people and families can thrive.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Afghanistan: Refugees

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is providing support to British Council staff in Afghanistan to travel to Pakistan so they can apply to come to the UK.

Leo Docherty: Eligible at-risk British Council contractors who supported the UK effort in Afghanistan, and expressed interest in the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), are being considered for resettlement through ACRS Pathway 3 in its first year. Any offer of resettlement will be contingent on security screening and provision of biometric information. We continue to work, including with likeminded partners and countries neighbouring Afghanistan, on resettlement issues and to support safe passage for eligible Afghans. We do not comment on the details of specific routes for individuals who are eligible for resettlement.

Vladimir Kara-Murza

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will ensure that UK diplomats are present at the trial in Moscow of the joint British citizen Vladimir Kara-Murza.

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make representations to the Russian Government on the detention of the joint British citizen Vladimir Kara-Murza.

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish the number of prison visits made by UK diplomats to visit the joint British citizen Vladimir Kara-Murza in detention in Moscow; and what assessment he has made of (a) the adequacy of his custodial conditions and (b) his health.

Leo Docherty: British Embassy officials have attended Vladimir Kara-Murza's court hearings, the most recent being on 25 January. We will continue to attend, but remain vigilant to attempts by the Russian government to exclude diplomats from future hearings. The UK continues to raise Mr Kara-Murza's case with the Russian authorities and call for his release. We are providing consular support to his family and continue to request consular access. Last month I [Minister Docherty] met with Mr Kara-Murza's wife, Evgenia. We condemn the politically motivated detention of Mr Kara-Murza, and of all those who speak out against Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Afghanistan: Hazara

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the risk of genocide from the targeting of Hazara Muslims in Afghanistan.

Leo Docherty: FCDO officials regularly press the Taliban to protect religious and ethnic minorities. On 8 December 2022, Lord Ahmad, the Minister of State for South Asia, met Hazara representatives who provided useful insight on the situation. It is HMG policy that it is for a competent national or international court, such as the International Criminal Court, to determine whether crimes against humanity and genocide have been committed and who is responsible.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, at what stage under the ACRS pathway 3 process applicants and their dependants are formally offered a place on the scheme; until what date his Department will continue leading on processing ACRS pathway 3 applications; and if he will make a statement.

Leo Docherty: Confirmation of a place on ACRS Pathway 3 is subject to providing biometrics at a Visa Application Centre in a third country and passing security checks. FCDO are leading on the processing of Year 1 of ACRS Pathway 3. Beyond the first year of Pathway 3, the Government will continue to work with likeminded international partners and NGOs to welcome wider groups of Afghans at risk. Further detail will be set out in due course.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will set out each stage of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme Pathway 3 process after initial security and identity checks have been completed, providing anticipated timeframes for checks in third-party countries; and if he will make a statement.

Leo Docherty: It is not possible to provide a timeframe for the relocation of those eligible under ACRS Pathway 3 due to a number of factors, including the complexity of the cases, the speed with which those expressing interest respond to our requests for information and how quickly they clear the required security checks, the time for which varies on a case-by-case basis. We continue to work, including with likeminded partners and countries neighbouring Afghanistan, on resettlement issues and to support safe passage for eligible Afghans.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that people deemed eligible for a place on the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme Pathway 3 are not disadvantaged or delayed if they are undocumented.

Leo Docherty: The Taliban control the issuing of Afghan passports. We know that obtaining new Afghan passports can be difficult, although we also know that some Afghan citizens have succeeded in doing so. The Taliban, as well as the countries surrounding Afghanistan, require valid documents for travel and those who attempt to travel without them may be putting themselves at risk. We strongly discourage anyone from crossing illegally into another country and doing so will make it more difficult for us to take forward relocation to the UK.

Afghanistan: Refugees

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether people offered places on the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme via Pathway 3 will receive assistance to reach third party countries; whether discussions are happening with third party countries to facilitate safe passage and support; and if he will make a statement.

Leo Docherty: The UK government continues to work, including with likeminded partners and countries neighbouring Afghanistan, on resettlement issues and to support safe passage for eligible Afghans. We do not comment on the details of specific routes for individuals who are eligible for resettlement.

Saudi Arabia: Arms Trade

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make it his policy to ban the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia.

David Rutley: The Government takes its strategic export control responsibilities very seriously. The Government will not grant an export licence if to do so would be inconsistent with the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria, including respect for human rights and international humanitarian law. All licences are kept under careful and continual review as standard.

Syria: Peace Negotiations

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help promote lasting peace in Syria.

David Rutley: The UK uses its UN Security Council role to advance the UN-facilitated political process in line with UNSCR 2254. We support the work of UN Special Envoy to this effect, and are working with him to develop his 'step for step' approach to making progress. The Assad regime and its backers remain intransigent; we urge them to engage in good faith.Lasting peace requires accountability. We pursue this through sanctions; raising awareness of crimes committed in Syria; and support for evidence-gathering, including through the UN Commission of Inquiry; the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism for Syria; and UK programme partners.

Iran: Christianity

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Christians in Iran are not prevented from having places to worship.

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the imprisonment of Christians in Iran for (a) involvement with house-churches and (b) the peaceful practice of their faith.

David Rutley: Promoting the right to freedom of religion or belief for all is one of the UK's longstanding human rights priorities. We continue to assess that Christians in Iran, particularly recent converts, face arrest, harassment and unfair detention. We raise these and other human rights issues with the Iranian authorities at all appropriate opportunities. We continue to work closely with our international partners to hold Iran to account for its dire human rights record, including through the Human Rights Council in Geneva and the UN General Assembly in New York.

Yazidis: Missing Persons

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with international counterparts to help locate over 2,700 missing Yazidi women and children.

David Rutley: The UK advocated strongly for the passing of the Yazidi Survivors' Law in March 2021 and the establishment of the Directorate of Yazidi Affairs. The Directorate is responsible for searching for survivors and supporting judicial and investigative bodies on holding perpetrators to account. We have also provided £2 million to the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Daesh (UNITAD). The UK joined likeminded partners in committing to support Yazidis displaced or abducted by Daesh in a Joint alliance statement issued in October 2021. We continue to press the Government of Iraq on the importance of these issues, including searching for those missing Yazidi women and children abducted by Daesh.

BBC Persian Service

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the planned closure of some BBC World Service Persian services, in the context of protests in Iran.

David Rutley: The FCDO strongly values the BBC World Service's role in bringing high-quality and impartial broadcasting to audiences in need. The FCDO funds 12 language services through the World2020 programme; the remaining services, including BBC Persian, are funded by the Licence Fee. The BBC is operationally and editorially independent from Government and therefore decisions about service delivery are for them to take.Under BBC proposals, whilst BBC Persian radio will cease, TV broadcasting will continue and investment in digital services will increase, reflecting audience trends - according to the BBC, only 1% of their Iranian audience use BBC Persian radio.The UK is a fierce champion of media freedom and proud member of the Media Freedom Coalition. We regularly raise the issue of the Iranian peoples' right to access independent media, including BBC Persian with the Iranian government and in multilateral fora.

Egypt: Foreign Relations

Mr David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when a Minister last had discussions with their Egyptian counterpart; and whether the case of Alaa Abd El-Fattah was raised in those discussions.

David Rutley: The UK Government, including the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, and his Ministerial team, makes regular representations to the Egyptian Government about Alaa Abd El-Fattah's imprisonment, welfare and lack of consular access. We will continue to do so until his case is resolved. The Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, most recently raised Mr El-Fattah's case with the Egyptian Ambassador on 5 December.

Iraq: Religious Freedom

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications of his Department's policies of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom report entitled Religious Freedom amid Iraq’s Political Crisis, published on 3 January 2023, in particular on the anti-Sunni Muslim sentiment in Iraq referenced in that report.

David Rutley: We note the findings of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom report. The UK urged all political parties to act on the 2021 election results and swiftly form a government that would deliver a stable and representative Iraqi government that can build inclusive and effective governance, stability and security for all Iraqi citizens, including Sunni communities.Promotion of the right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) is a longstanding human rights priority for the UK and we are firmly committed to protecting ethnic and religious minorities in Iraq. The embassy in Baghdad and Consulate General in Erbil regularly meets with Faith Leaders and we continue to lobby the government of Iraq to implement the Yazidi Survivors Law in full and improve the conditions for all religious minority communities throughout Iraq.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Recruitment

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much his Department has spent on headhunters in each of the last three years.

David Rutley: In 2022, the FCDO spent £49,599 on agencies to support the recruitment of UK specialist resource. The spend for 2021 was £79,332; and for 2020 was £120,659.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Electronic Purchasing Card Solution

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February to Question 133964 on Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Electronic Purchasing Card Solution, what type of furniture was hired from the company concerned; and what purpose it had at the functions described.

David Rutley: The purchases from Capital Pinball on the dates noted relate to table, chair, marquee, cutlery and crockery hire for larger scale functions at the British High Commission in Canberra and at Westminster House, the High Commissioner's official Residence in Canberra.These events included the Queen's Birthday Party, a reception to mark the end of the UK-hosted COP26 and a lunch with Australian Chevening scholars. Guests included Ministers, parliamentarians, indigenous leaders and other key stakeholders.The exchange of gifts and hospitality has long been an important part of building relations and diplomacy. All expenses undergo rigorous oversight to ensure they are reasonable and adhere to FCDO spending regulations.

British Nationals Abroad: Detainees

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the total number of UK nationals is who are deemed to be arbitrarily detained by other countries.

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, which countries were deemed to be arbitrarily detaining UK nationals as of 31 January 2023.

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help secure the release of UK nationals who are being arbitrarily detained overseas.

David Rutley: The FCDO takes all allegations of human rights violations, including arbitrary detention, seriously. We tailor our support to British nationals depending on their specific circumstances, and what we consider to be in their best interests. Where appropriate, we raise allegations with the local authorities, often engaging at the highest levels, and expect all States to abide by their international human rights obligations. The FCDO is not an investigative body, but carefully considers all available information. A database of opinions adopted by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, including those concerning British nationals who it considers to be arbitrarily detained, can be accessed via the website of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Ministry of Defence

Ministry of Defence: Vehicles

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) fossil fuel-, (b) electric- and (c) hybrid-powered road-legal vehicles their Department purchased in the last 24 months.

Alex Chalk: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is committed to reducing the emissions emitted by its use of road-legal vehicles to support the Government's Net Zero targets.The majority of road legal vehicles used across Defence are leased through the Phoenix II Contract. There are only a limited number of purchased vehicles, and these are often adapted for specialist roles such as military policing. Information on the types and numbers of vehicles leased under contract between 1 February 2021 and 1 February 2023 is provided below:Vehicles for delivery from 1 Feb 2021Internal Combustion Engine - 353Electric - 16Hybrid - 277Vehicles for delivery from Nov 2021 to 31 Dec 2022Internal Combustion Engine - 1193Electric - 387Hybrid - 965However, due to the delegated nature of road legal vehicle procurement, it is not possible to retrieve and compile the information requested on purchased vehicles without incurring disproportionate cost.

Palantir: Contracts

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of Palantir’s performance in their contract with his Department; and whether poor performance would affect further applications from the company for contracts with other departments.

Alex Chalk: The Ministry of Defence closely monitors the performance of all its technology products and services (including Palantir) against defined metrics: Key Performance Indicators, Service Level Agreements, and a service credit regime. Any poor performance is identified, addressed and reported. This is essential to maintaining good relationships and ensuring Defence suppliers continue to meet Defence standards. Defence supplier performance metrics are reported into the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis, evidencing supplier performance against the top key performance indicators.

Veterans: Disclosure of Information

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's policy is on veterans publicly disclosing information on the number of people they have killed in combat.

Dr Andrew Murrison: All loss of life in a conflict is tragic, which is why military intervention is always a last resort. It is vital during a conflict to record deaths, but we are equally conscious that behind every death is a grieving family. The Department does not have a specific policy on the matter raised by the hon. Member.

Department for Work and Pensions

Housing Benefit: Portsmouth South

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the proportional uptake of Housing Benefit by people of pension age in Portsmouth South constituency; and what steps he is taking to help ensure that Housing Benefit is paid to all such people entitled to it.

Mims Davies: The information on the uptake of Housing Benefit by pensioners is not available at constituency level. The Department publishes estimates of benefit take-up in the Official Statistics series Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up. Gov.uk provides information on the availability of Housing Benefit and advice on how to claim. Local Authorities determine any take-up activity locally to ensure those who require housing support make the necessary application as required by legislation.

Buildings: Asbestos

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is undertaking with the Health and Safety Executive to help ensure that UK workplaces are asbestos-free.

Mims Davies: In Great Britain, the regulatory framework for the control of asbestos exposure risks in workplaces is provided by the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR). These regulations are owned by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Under these regulations, HSE requires dutyholders to assess whether asbestos is present in their buildings, what condition it is in and whether it gives rise to a risk of exposure. The duty-holder must then draw up a plan to manage the risk associated with asbestos. Importantly, this must include removal of the asbestos if it cannot be safely managed where it remains in place. Dutyholders are also legally required to remove asbestos containing materials before major refurbishment or demolition work. HSE provides extensive guidance on its website (HSE: Asbestos - health and safety in the workplace) to dutyholders to enable them to meet their legal duties and continues to carry out targeted inspection activity to support compliance.

Canada: Pensions

Richard Thomson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2023 to Question 127917 on Canada: Social Security Benefits, if he will hold discussions with his Canadian counterpart on the frozen pensions policy.

Laura Trott: There are two separate social security arrangements in place between the UK and Canada, made in 1995 and 1998. The UK Government has no plans to change the social security relationship with Canada.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Agriculture: Seasonal Workers

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help secure more temporary seasonal workers.

Mark Spencer: Defra continues to speak regularly with the sector and other Government departments to understand labour supply and demand, including both permanent and seasonal workforce requirements, and to make sure that the sector’s workforce requirements are understood across Government. On 16 December 2022, the Government announced that an allocation of 45,000 visas will be made available in 2023 enabling edible and ornamental horticulture businesses to recruit foreign workers for up to six months. This is an uplift of 15,000 visas compared to the allocation at the start of 2022 and additional Operators have been brought in to add resilience to the route’s operation. A further 10,000 visas are potentially available for horticulture should there be demand and contingent on sponsors and growers continuing to improve worker welfare standards. The Seasonal Worker visa route will continue to operate until at least the end of 2024 and food and farming businesses can continue to draw on EU nationals living in the United Kingdom with settled or pre-settled status to meet their seasonal worker needs. In addition, the Government has commissioned an independent review of labour shortages in the food supply chain. It will consider how automation, domestic labour and migrant labour can contribute to tackling labour shortages across the farming, processing, and food and drink manufacturing as sectors that are critical for food production and food security. It will report in spring 2023.

Housing: Sewers

Sir James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of mandating sustainable drainage systems for all new housing developments in England.

Rebecca Pow: Defra carried out a review into making sustainable drainage systems mandatory for new developments in England. The review was published on 10 January 2023 and the Government is now looking at how best to implement through Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. Final decisions on scope, threshold and process will be made following a public consultation later this year and implementation will take place during 2024.

Deposit Return Schemes

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has discussed her proposals for a Deposit Return Scheme with the Federation of Small Businesses.

Rebecca Pow: We are committed to continuing engagement and working collaboratively with industry to deliver a cost effective, well-functioning scheme. My officials work closely with trade bodies representing small drinks producers and small retailers including the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) and the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS). This is targeted engagement with sectors most impacted by DRS. We are also committed to continuing to review the impact on small businesses and considering further mitigations or support they might need as we move into implementation.

Deposit Return Schemes: Scotland

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has discussed the Scottish Government’s proposals for a Deposit Return Scheme with the Scottish Environment Minister.

Rebecca Pow: UK Government, Welsh Government and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland are developing a joint Deposit Return Scheme which will cover England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A separate scheme is being delivered in Scotland, although we remain in close contact with officials and industry to learn from delivery of the Scottish scheme, and align on key decisions wherever possible. DRS has been discussed at inter-ministerial groups.

Ports: Plymouth

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the fishing industry in Plymouth was notified of the (a) planned works by the Environment Agency on Sutton Harbour lock gates and (b) expected restrictions on their operations.

Rebecca Pow: The Environment Agency (EA) has been in direct and regular liaison with Sutton Harbour Group (SHG) about the work required to repair the lock. This involved reviewing the proposed methodology and understanding the implications of the planned work, before SHG were able to engage directly with their customers. The Sutton Harbour Group invited the fishing industry (through their mailing list of 96 fishers and vessel owners) to attend the Sutton Harbour Group quarterly meeting on 13 July 2022. The EA was invited to give a presentation at this meeting, which set out:The need for the works, the nature of the works, and methodologyThe consideration, in discussion with SHG, given on the access to the harbour, based on the arrangements used successfully during the gate replacement project in 2008. A question-and-answer session followed the presentation, during which the EA gathered feedback to input to the planning process. Following this, a website was created to publish the latest updates for SHG’s customers: www.lockgates.info and work continues to develop mitigation plans both the fishing fleet and leisure berth holders.

Ports: Plymouth

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of appropriate levels of compensation for lost fishing time due to the planned works by the Environment Agency on Sutton Harbour lock gates in Plymouth.

Rebecca Pow: The calculation and assessment of compensation is dealt with on a case by case basis and would be based on the information submitted in support of the request. It is not commonplace for compensation to be assessed ahead of an event, as it is dependent on losses actually incurred.

Ports: Plymouth

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with how many (a) fishermen, (b) vessel owners and (c) quayside support businesses the Environment Agency has had direct contact on the planned timings of that Agency's proposed remedial works to the Sutton Harbour lock gates in Plymouth.

Rebecca Pow: Engagement with Sutton Harbour Group’s (SHG’s) customers and tenants has been carried out through their engagement channels, including their quarterly meetings, distribution lists (96 for fishing industry, 446 leisure berth holders), radio channels and through the Harbour Master. The Environment Agency (EA) has provided support on the technical and programme aspects and attended meetings to enable stakeholders to ask questions on the proposed works. After the initial meeting, representatives from the fishing industry and the berth holders formed working groups to attend meetings and cascade information amongst stakeholder groups. In addition to the main stakeholder engagement and communications carried out by SHG, the EA has had direct contact with: 3 Fishermen (96 fishers and vessel owners contacted through SHG mailing list)4 Vessel Owners (96 fishers and vessel owners contacted through SHG mailing list)13 Quayside Support Businesses16 Leisure berth holders (446 contacted through SHG mailing list)An engagement plan has been created by SHG, the EA and Kier to ensure that communication leading up to and during construction is timely and efficient.

Ports: Plymouth

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will publish the Habitats Regulations Assessment for the Environment Agency's proposed remedial works to the Sutton Harbour lock gates in Plymouth.

Rebecca Pow: Having considered the advice from the Environment Agency’s National Environmental Assessment Service, we are satisfied no Habitats Regulations Assessment is required. This included consideration of the works location within the existing concrete structure and minimal risk of pollution.

Ports: Plymouth

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will publish the Environmental Impact Assessment for the Environment Agency's proposed remedial works to the Sutton Harbour lock gates in Plymouth.

Rebecca Pow: The Environment Agency considers that the maintenance works are like for like replacement on the existing concrete footprint of the lock structure and are not likely to have significant effects on the environment and does not intend to prepare an Environmental Statement in respect of them.

Air Pollution: Pollution Control

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will publish her Department’s modelling which shows that reducing the annual mean concentration of PM2.5 to 10 µg/m3 by 2030 is not possible; and if she will make a statement.

Rebecca Pow: A further report detailing the modelling conducted in support of the PM2.5 targets was published on 9 February 2023. This is available here, alongside the numerous other documents which formed part of the over 800 pages of published evidence which supported the development of the environmental targets: Air Quality Targets in the Environment Act - Defra, UK.

Fishing Vessels: Inspections

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many at sea inspections were conducted in fishing areas (a) Area 7D and (b) Area 7E of (i) UK vessels under 10m, (ii) UK vessels over 10m and (iii) EU vessels.

Mark Spencer: The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) employs a risk and intelligence based operational model to deliver surveillance and assurance capability at sea. At-sea inspections are just one of a range of tools deployed by the MMO as part of its strategy to prevent fisheries infringements in English waters. The breakdown of inspections by MMO in fishing areas 7D and 7E during 2021 and 2022 was: 2021Area 7DArea 7EUK vessels under 10m3014UK vessels over 10m3482EU vessels8074 2022Area 7DArea 7EUK vessels under 10m1656UK vessels over 10m4889EU vessels7571

Sewage: Waste Disposal

Simon Jupp: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the report by Ofwat entitled Water Company Performance Report 2021-22, published in December 2022, whether her Department plans to take steps to ensure that underspend is invested by water companies into reducing sewage discharges.

Rebecca Pow: Ofwat’s findings that water companies are not spending investment assigned to make service improvements is completely unacceptable. Overall, water companies have only spent 61% of their forecasted wastewater enhancement cost allowance during 2020-22, which has resulted in delaying crucial wastewater infrastructure to improve water resilience and the environment. Yorkshire Water and South West Water have only spent 20% and 39% of their allowance, respectively. The SoS and I met with the CEOs of these two companies in December to discuss their performance. I am aware that the COVID pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine have impacted on supply chains, but other water companies are exceeding their spend and I expect all water companies to urgently get their spending back on track and implement the upgrades to water and wastewater infrastructure they have been funded to deliver and that customers rightly expect. I will continue to meet with the CEOs of underperforming companies to monitor their progress. Ofwat, as the economic regulator for the water industry, has been clear that where these expectations are not met and companies are failing to comply with their obligations, they will take action, including enforcement action where warranted.

Sewage: Waste Disposal

Simon Jupp: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s policy paper entitled Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan, published on 26 August 2022, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce combined sewer overflow discharges in (a) inland and (b) coastal waters.

Rebecca Pow: The Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction plan will require water companies to deliver the largest infrastructure programme in water company history - £56 billion capital investment over 25 years – to significantly reduce sewage discharges. Our plan prioritises areas at risk of the greatest ecological harm first, to ensure we have the biggest impact, as quickly as possible. Our targets will ensure that no water body in England should fail to achieve good ecological status due to storm overflow discharges. We have prioritised action for storm overflows discharging near or into inland and coastal bathing waters. By 2035, water companies must significantly reduce harmful pathogens from storm overflows discharging into and near designated inland and coastal bathing waters.

Sewers: Urban Areas

Simon Jupp: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of sustainable urban drainage schemes that are (a) in full operation and (b) under construction in England.

Rebecca Pow: The number of sustainable urban drainage schemes that are in full operation or under construction in England is not held by my department.

Sugar Beet: Neonicotinoids

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 6 February 2023 to Question 136800 on Sugar Beet: Neonicotinoids, if he will publish the conditions attached to the authorisation.

Mark Spencer: The conditions attached to the 2023 emergency authorisation of Cruiser SB are published and available here: Statement of reasons for the decision on the application for emergency authorisation for the use of Cruiser SB on sugar beet crops in 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Environmental Land Management Schemes

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Environmental Land Management scheme will be introduced.

Mark Spencer: We have already opened two new Environmental Land Management schemes. The Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), which supports farmers to undertake activities to grow food whilst improving the environment and animal health and welfare, launched in June 2022. SFI is being rolled out incrementally – we introduced three SFI standards in 2022, six further SFI standards will be available in summer 2023, and the full offer will be in place by the start of 2025. In 2022 we also awarded development funding for the first 22 Landscape Recovery projects – longer-term, larger-scale projects to enhance the natural environment. We will open applications for further rounds of Landscape Recovery in Spring 2023 and in 2024. We are also evolving the Countryside Stewardship scheme so that it pays for a wider range of targeted, specific actions. Through the Countryside Stewardship Plus we will reward farmers for taking coordinated action, working with neighbouring farms and landowners to support climate and nature aims.

Highly Protected Marine Areas

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her Departments plans are for the delivery of future rounds of Highly Protected Marine Areas.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her timeframe is for announcing the designation of pilot Highly Protected Marine Areas in UK waters.

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what further steps her Department plans to take following the designation of the pilot Highly Protected Marine Areas to help strengthen marine protection across English waters.

Trudy Harrison: Defra recently consulted on five candidate pilot Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs) in English waters. The consultation closed on 28 September 2022. The resulting evidence will inform the Secretary of State’s decision on the designation of pilot sites and final site boundaries. As confirmed in the recent Environment Improvement Plan, we intend to designate the first HPMAs this year. We will continue to maintain engagement with stakeholders.

Deposit Return Schemes

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has discussed her proposals for a Deposit Return Scheme with the Mayor of London.

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has discussed her proposals for a Deposit Return Scheme with representatives from the Foodservice Packaging Association.

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has discussed her proposals for a Deposit Return Scheme with the Local Government Association.

Rebecca Pow: The Government recognises the need to work closely with stakeholders and we intend to continue our engagement as we move into implementation, including with trade associations and local authorities. We have not discussed the proposals for a DRS directly with the Mayor of London.

Environment Protection

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the period of time was between the conception and publication of the Environmental Improvement Plan 2023.

Trudy Harrison: The Environment Act 2021 was first introduced to Parliament on 30 January 2020 and received Royal Assent on 9 November 2021. It requires that the Secretary of State prepare an Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) for significantly improving the natural environment. The Act designated the 25 Year Environment Plan (25YEP) as the first EIP. The Act requires the government to review its EIP every five years. As committed to in the Environment Act, on 31st January 2023 the government completed the review of the 25YEP and published its second statutory Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP23). Our Written Ministerial Statement laid alongside EIP23 sets out the revisions we have made and the reasons for them.

Environment Agency: Pay

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she (a) has taken and (b) intends to take to resolve the ongoing dispute over the 2022-23 Environment Agency pay offer.

Rebecca Pow: My Department works with the Environment Agency through the provision of its Corporate Services, including HR, to support it in developing a pay offer for its staff whilst ensuring it meets the requirements of the Government’s pay guidance of the day. The Environment Agency, as a non-departmental public body, conducts its own relevant consultation and negotiations on such matters, and has been actively engaging with the unions on the issue of pay.

Poultry: Animal Housing

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to retain the ban on the use of battery cages for laying hens included in The Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007.

Mark Spencer: Defra is in the process of analysing and assessing its retained EU law stock to determine what should be preserved as part of domestic law, and what should be repealed, or amended. This work will determine how we use the powers in the Bill, including in relation to the Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) Regulations 2007. Having said this, there are no plans to remove the ban on battery cages for laying hens.

Dartmoor National Park

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the recent High Court decision on Dartmoor National Park, whether she intends to update the definition of open-air recreation in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 to include wild camping.

Trudy Harrison: There are no plans to update the definition of open-air recreation as set out in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949.

National Park Authorities: Fundraising

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the CareMoor for Exmoor crowdfunder launched by the Exmoor National Park Authority, what assessment her Department has made of the implications for its policies of the projected shortfall in National Park Authority budgets for 2023-24; and what information her Department holds on the Authority's target for fundraising for core services via public appeals for donation.

Trudy Harrison: We recognise the economic challenges facing National Park Authorities and that they are considering options to manage current inflationary pressures. The Government remains committed to supporting our National Park Authorities and are working with them to generate more income from a range of sources including commercial revenue. As National Park Authorities are responsible for balancing their budgets, DEFRA does not hold information related to individual parks fundraising targets.

Home Office

Asylum: Children

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to with reference to the response to the Urgent Question on 24 January 2023 on Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking Children, Official Report column 865 what his findings were following his commitment to look into the Scottish guardianship model; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Jenrick: We do not currently have any findings to share relating to the Scottish Guardianship Model.However, this Government takes its responsibility for the welfare of migrant children very seriously. We have comprehensive statutory and policy safeguards in place for caring for and safeguarding unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC).Social workers and the courts are best placed to make decisions for vulnerable children, in consideration of all the factors involved in often complex cases. Children should be cared for in a way that recognises and respects their identity and carers should be given the training and support they need to meet the child’s needs.Local authorities are responsible for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children in their area, including their mental health and emotional wellbeing needs, regardless of their immigration status. Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) are provided in addition to this statutory support and are an additional source of advice and support for potentially trafficked children, irrespective of nationality, and somebody who can advocate on their behalf. Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children can access legal advice from qualified legal representatives and, in England, independent advice and assistance on the asylum process and in their interactions with government agencies is available from the Refugee Council’s Independent Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children Support Service (IUSS).

Biometric Residence Permits

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for biometric residence permits are being processed by her Department as of 2 February 2023.

Robert Jenrick: The information on how many residence permits currently being processed is not available in the format requested and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) are issued to customers as part of the visa application process. We aim to deliver a BRP within 7 working days of the immigration decision. The waiting times for Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) are dictated by the BRP production and delivery processes.

Sofiia Nikolaiets

Peter Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will urgently meet with the hon. Member for Darlington to discuss the case of his constituent Sofiia Nikolaiets and her Department’s response to that matter.

Robert Jenrick: The Home Office provided an update to the hon. Member on 9 February 2023.

Scotland Office

Deposit Return Schemes: Scotland

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on proposals to introduce a deposit return scheme.

Mr Alister Jack: Ministerial colleagues and officials from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have regular engagement with counterparts from across the devolved administrations on this topic. The UK Government remains in contact with Devolved Government officials and with industry to understand plans to deliver the Scottish Government scheme, and discuss cross-UK alignment on key decisions where appropriate.

Department for Business and Trade

Regulation

Lee Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that (a) all regulators and (b) the Gambling Commission act in accordance with the Regulators Code.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Regulators Code is a framework for how regulators should engage with those they regulate. The Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act 2006, requires those regulators covered by its scope, including the Gambling Commission, to have regard to it when setting their policies and operational procedures. The Office for Product Safety and Standards works to support the effective implementation of the Regulators’ Code.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Alternative Fuel Payments

Christopher Pincher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when the delayed Alternative Fuel Payment will be paid to recipients; and if he will make a statement.

Graham Stuart: Most eligible households will start to receive the Alternative Fuel payment (AFP) automatically via their electricity supplier which begun 6 February. Payments are expected to be completed within February - although this will depend on customers’ suppliers and how they pay their bills. Delivery mirrors the methods used to provide support under the government’s other energy bill support schemes. Most households will not need to take any action to receive the support. A small proportion of households will need to apply for the AFP. These households will be able to do so in February, through a GOV.UK portal which will include an overview of eligibility and what applicants need to do to apply for support.

Wind Power: Capital Investment

Bob Seely: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made with Cabinet colleagues of the effectiveness of Government incentives for companies to invest in Offshore wind innovation.

Graham Stuart: The Government is supporting research and development in offshore wind technology via the Net Zero Innovation Programme (NZIP), which will provide £60 million of funding for technologies including floating offshore wind and radar mitigation. Each of these programmes includes an element of matched funding from the private sector. The effectiveness of these programmes will be considered as part of the wider benefits evaluation work of the NZIP.The Government also awarded £3.12 million to the innovative ERM-Dolphin project in 2020, which will develop a floating wind farm to produce green hydrogen at scale with a target capacity of 4GW by 2032.

Energy: Meters

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with on (a) Ofgem and (b) energy suppliers on ensuring that prepayment meter customers do not pay more for their energy.

Graham Stuart: Supply licence conditions, enforced by the independent regulator Ofgem, state that differences in price between payment methods for energy must reflect the cost to the supplier of that payment method. The costs of managing prepayment meters are higher than those for standard meters due to the different metering requirements and payment systems. Ofgem has said that it will be looking at all energy payment methods to see whether there is a case for levelling them, taking account of the trade-offs and other issues that would involve.

Energy: Meters

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps to provide compensation to people who have had prepayment meters installed where an energy company has not followed its regulatory obligations.

Graham Stuart: My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State wrote to suppliers on 4 February, asking them to outline what steps they will take to identify consumers with an inappropriately installed prepayment meter. He confirmed the Government’s expectation that where such customers are identified, appropriate steps will be taken to rectify the situation, including the possibility of compensation.

Energy: Meters

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will take steps with Ofgem to require energy companies to assess the reasons for which customers cannot afford their energy tariff prior to moving them onto prepayment meters.

Graham Stuart: Ofgem rules require energy suppliers to assess whether installing a prepayment meter or changing a smart meter to prepayment mode is safe and reasonably practicable for the customer. This assessment should include identifying any vulnerability and the customer’s ability to pay.

Nuclear Reactors

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what support his Department provides for the development of British based nuclear (a) small and (b) advanced modular reactors.

Graham Stuart: The Government has committed up to £385m to an Advanced Nuclear Fund. Of this, £210m has been awarded to support development of the Rolls Royce Small Modular Reactor (SMR) design, potentially capable of deployment in the UK in the early 2030s. The Rolls-Royce SMR entered the Generic Design Assessment process in March becoming the first SMR to begin UK nuclear regulation. The Advanced Nuclear Fund also supports AMRs. Phase B of the open AMR R&D competition launched in December 2022 to provide up to £55 million to fund up to two different projects to develop detailed FEED+ studies.

Energy: Meters

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether energy consumers have a right to ask for a smart meter to be removed and replaced with a traditional meter.

Graham Stuart: Smart meters are modernising the energy system and benefit households and small business across Great Britain. Energy suppliers are responsible for the provision of metering and are required to take all reasonable steps to install a smart meter where a meter is fitted for the first time or when an existing meter needs to be replaced. Energy suppliers are best placed to make decisions on individual circumstances in accordance with customer needs and availability of existing traditional meters.

Energy Bill Relief Scheme: Public Houses

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether multi-function premises used for both residential and business purposes which have business electricity accounts, including pubs where the landlord lives above the pub, will be eligible for support under the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Payment; and whether further guidance will be provided.

Graham Stuart: Multi-function premises that are used for both residential and business purposes, and have the same address, will not be eligible for the Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding (EBSS AF). Instead, the user of the premises is likely to be eligible to receive support through the Energy Bills Relief Scheme (EBRS) with more information available on the GOV.UK webpages. If the residential dwelling has a different postal address, is not a business premises, is used wholly or mainly for domestic purposes, and is not paying business rates, this household would likely be eligible for the EBSS AF.

Energy: Meters

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether (a) his Department and (b) Ofgem were consulted before the advice was issued by the National Leadership Magistrate to magistrates regarding warrants to force fit prepayment meters.

Graham Stuart: The decision to suspend the fitting of prepayment meter warrants was made by the senior presiding judge for England and Wales, who is a member of the judiciary and acts independently from Government. The Department and Ofgem have had discussions about prepayment meter warrants with the Ministry of Justice and will continue to do so.

Energy Bills Rebate: Meters

Andrew Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing customers to choose whether Energy Bill Support Scheme vouchers are applied to their gas and electricity accounts.

Graham Stuart: Transferring Energy Bills Support Scheme payments from electricity meters to gas meters is allowed under the scheme. It is at the discretion of the energy supplier and the Government encourages them to offer their customers as much flexibility as possible.

Alternative Fuel Payments: Wales

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what discussions he has had with (a) the Welsh Government and (b) Welsh local authorities on Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding, including a portal for people who do not have a direct relationship with an electricity supplier; what steps his Department is taking to encourage people to apply for the funding; and what steps he is taking to help people without internet access to apply for that scheme.

Graham Stuart: The Government is speaking to the Welsh Government to provide them with updates on the EBSS Alternative Funding scheme and is working with local authorities across the UK to prepare for delivery of the scheme. The Government is also working closely with key stakeholder groups who are helping to provide information and updates to eligible households and who will help to raise awareness of the application process when the portal opens later in February. A dedicated customer helpline will be available to assist customers who do not have online access, with further details to be released this month.

Alternative Fuel Payments

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what progress the Government has made on the implementation of the Non-Domestic Alternative Fuel Payment; and when he expects the payment to be delivered.

Graham Stuart: On 6 February, I announced further information on the Non-Domestic Alternative Fuel Payment Scheme (ND-AFP). Electricity suppliers can now start providing discounts to eligible off-grid energy users and they will deliver this support up to 10 March. Most customers are expected to receive a credit of £150 on bills later this month and will not need to apply.A top-up payment in addition to the £150 will be available for large users of heating oil (kerosene) in GB and NI to take account of their higher usage. These top-up payments will require an application to a delivery body and will be banded based on level of usage. The Government will set out further details in the near future.

Energy Bills Rebate: Applications

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what his planned timetable is for the implementation of a portal for people who do not have a direct relationship with an electricity supplier to claim the Alternative Fuel Payment.

Chris Elmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether people without a direct relationship with their electricity supplier will be paid the Alternative Fuel Payment in February 2023.

Graham Stuart: Households that need to apply for the Alternative Fuel Payment because they do not have a relationship with an electricity supplier will be able to do so through a GOV.UK portal. This portal will include an overview of eligibility and what applicants need to do to apply for support. Households will be able to do this by the end of February.

Business: Energy and Trade

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of assessing the energy and trade intensity of individual types of business, such as commercial laundries, to provide more granular data than that afforded by standard industrial classification codes applied at a sector level.

Graham Stuart: The Government currently has no plans to review the eligibility criteria for the Energy and Trade Intensive element of the Energy Bill Discount Scheme. The HMT-led review of the Energy Bill Relief Scheme took account of many contributions from the private sector, trade associations, the voluntary sector and other types of organisations. Trade and energy intensity assessments were based on ONS and BEIS data. These thresholds have been set at sectors falling above the 80th percentile for energy intensity, and 60th percentile for trade intensity, plus any sectors eligible for the existing energy compensation and exemption schemes. The list of eligible Standard Industrial Classification (SIC), as published on gov.uk, will be eligible for the higher level of support.

Energy: Meters

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking to help households return to monthly energy contracts following forced installation of prepayment meters.

Graham Stuart: My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has written to domestic energy suppliers regarding the forced installation of prepayment meters (PPM). Suppliers have been asked to share the steps they are taking to identify customers who may have had a PPM installed inappropriately and to take appropriate action in any cases where this has happened. All domestic suppliers have been asked to pause the installation of PPM under warrant until they have assured Ofgem that they are compliant with all relevant regulations and obligations.

Energy Bills Rebate: Telephone Services

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February to Question 136735 Energy Bills Rebate: Telephone Services, when he plans to complete work to ascertain the viability of comparing datasets held by the Electricity Central Online Enquiry Service with the Valuation Office Agency’s register of all domestic properties in England for the purposes of distributing EBSS Alternative Funding payments; and what other methods are being examined to identify eligible households.

Graham Stuart: Work is ongoing to ascertain the viability of the approach of comparing the datasets held by the Electricity Central Online Enquiry Service with the Valuation Office Agency’s register of all domestic properties in England, to identify eligible households under the EBSS Alternative Funding. The Government is also speaking to key stakeholder groups who are helping to update and provide further information to eligible households on when they can apply for their £400 support.

Alternative Fuel Payments

Mr Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when households who use (a) liquefied petroleum gas, (b) heating oil and (c) other off-grid fuels will receive the £200 alternative fuel payment.

Graham Stuart: Most households eligible for the Alternative Fuel Payment will receive the payment discount automatically via their electricity supplier in February. Delivery mirrors the methods used to provide support under the government’s other energy bill support schemes. Most households will not need to take any action to receive the support. For the small proportion of households that will need to apply for the Alternative Fuel Payment they will be able to do so by the end of February, through a GOV.UK portal which will include an overview of eligibility and what applicants need to do to apply for support.

Alternative Fuel Payments

Mr Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether his Department is taking steps to identify households who use (a) liquefied petroleum gas, (b) heating oil and (c) other off-grid fuels to help them apply for the £200 alternative fuel payment.

Graham Stuart: In order to identify households that are eligible for the Alternative Fuel Payment, the Government has produced a list of eligible Meter Point Administration Numbers (MPANs) and told electricity suppliers to pay those customers. MPANs are unique codes assigned to everyone’s electricity supply. The Government determined if an MPAN was eligible by taking a list of all domestic MPANs and removing those which are in on gas grid postcodes or where the local area predominantly uses electricity for heating, as defined by the most recent Census in their area.

Whisky: Renewable Energy

Jamie Stone: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether the Government has plans to provide funding to whiskey distilleries in the Highlands to assist the transition from fossil fuels to green energy, such as biogas and hydrogen.

Graham Stuart: The Green Gas Support Scheme provides tariff-based support for biomethane produced via anaerobic digestion injected into the gas grid in Great Britain. The scheme requires that at least 50% of all biomethane (by energy content) produced must use waste or residue feedstocks, which may include residues from the whiskey distilling process. Achieving the Government's legally binding net zero targets will require a range of technologies. Low carbon hydrogen will be critical to helping vital British industries transition away from expensive oil and gas, as well as providing greener energy for power, transport, and potentially home heating.

Energy Bill Relief Scheme: Leisure and Swimming Pools

Kim Leadbeater: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2023 to Question 135388 on Energy Bill Relief Scheme: Leisure and Swimming Pools, which Office for National Statistics data were used to assess whether swimming pools are trade intensive; and what estimate he has made of (i) the energy intensity of swimming pools and (ii) the percentile figure for (A) energy intensity and (B) trade intensity for (1) swimming pools and (2) leisure centres as part of the Government's trade and energy intensity assessment.

Graham Stuart: The organisations eligible for the Energy and Trade Intensive Industries scheme are those operating within sectors that fall above the 80th percentile for energy intensity and 60th percentile for trade intensity, as per ONS trade data, and those within sectors eligible for the existing Energy Intensive Industries compensation schemes. Both of those thresholds must be met to warrant inclusion, meaning that some energy intensive sectors, which are not significantly trade intensive like swimming pools and leisure centre, will not be eligible for support. The definition used for trade intensity is the international trade in goods in relation to the sector’s turnover percentile of the criteria set for the enhanced support for Energy and Trade Intensive Industries.

Fuel Oil

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that those households who have a heating oil based system will not face high costs when a ban on their usage comes into force in 2026 and a replacement heating source will be required.

Graham Stuart: The Government consulted on new regulations to phase out heating systems using high carbon fossil fuels in homes, businesses and public buildings in England off the gas grid during the 2020s. The Government will set out further details on these proposals when it responds to these consultations in due course. The Government is currently supporting households switching to clean heat through schemes like the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and Home Upgrade Grant, and it is working with industry to cut the cost of installing a heat pump as the market grows.

Batteries: Lithium

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has a policy on stockpiling lithium-ion batteries.

Graham Stuart: The Government does not have a specific policy on the stockpiling of lithium-ion batteries. As for other goods, the approach to the storage or stockpiling of batteries will be a decision for any parties involved. The storage of batteries should be carried out in compliance with UK laws, including ensuring safety requirements are met.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many households which were eligible for the Warm Homes Discount in 2022 are no longer eligible in 2023.

Graham Stuart: The Government has expanded the Warm Home Discount scheme this year, providing £150 rebates to over 3 million households. The Government published impact assessments when consulting and publishing the Government’s response, which compared the option for reforming the scheme to continuing the previous scheme. As households previously applied through their suppliers, who set their own application processes and eligibility criteria and selected successful applicants each year, the Government has not been able to assess how many households previously eligible are no longer eligible.

Cabinet Office

Government Consulting Hub

Angela Rayner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Office spent on the Government Consulting Hub in financial years of (a) 2020-21, (b) 2021-22 and (c) 2022-23.

Angela Rayner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many staff were trained by the Government Consulting Hub in financial years (a) 2020-21, (b) 2021-22 and c) 2022-23.

Angela Rayner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the document entitled An introduction to the Government Consulting Hub, published in August 2022, if he will make an estimate of how much Government expenditure on external consulting has reduced because of the work of Government Consulting Hub.

Angela Rayner: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has taken recent steps to reduce the use of private consultancies.

Jeremy Quin: The Government Consulting Hub (GCH) opened in May 2021, and operated on a cost neutral basis for the Cabinet Office, charging government departments for consultancy work undertaken and collecting a subscription fee for training and other services. It was tasked with helping to develop capability and ownership of consulting work within each department, triaging consulting requirements and establishing a “Consultancy Playbook” to establish best practice. A key focus of GCH was to develop capability and ownership of consultancy work within each department. GCH enhanced the skills of a total of 526 civil servants across a variety of programmes. In FY 2020-21, the capability offer was stood-up. 189 received training in FY 2021-22 and 337 in FY 2022-23. In total, 414 civil servants received training via the main offer “Core Consulting Skills for Government”; this included 96 Fast Streamers and 14 Director Generals via a Senior Leaders workshop. These skills continue to be deployed through the Civil Service. The estimated fee differential associated with Government Departments using GCH for consultancy rather than external suppliers was £4.3 million. The triage service has (since GCH was wound down on 31st January 2023) transferred to the Crown Commercial Service, building on the work done by GCH with each department. This transition is a recognition of the maturity level of the service, which means it can now integrate with CCS work on consultancy procurement strategies across Whitehall. The GCH capability programme, supporting civil servants to adopt consultancy type skills where appropriate, has now onboarded to Civil Service Learning, and will continue to be available to all civil servants. By improving these skills in the public sector, we can continue to ensure the Government is only using consultants when absolutely necessary. The Consultancy Playbook was well-received and set a new bar for how we get best value from external firms. It will now be integrated into the suite of playbooks owned by the Commercial Function.

Cabinet Office: Electronic Purchasing Card Solution

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to his Department’s publication of government procurement card spending over £500 in August 2019, what items were purchased from Majestic Wine on 14 August 2019; and for what purpose were they required.

Alex Burghart: As has been the case under successive Administrations, refreshments are allowed to be purchased for use at official government functions held for external guests. Due to the passage of almost four years since the transactions were made, the itemised information requested is not held.Given the Rt Hon Member’s personal interest in Majestic Wine, I would also point her to examples of such routine spending from the last Labour Government, as evident from the £2,430 bills of 19 January 2009, Official Report, Col. 1089W; the £8,286 bill of 24 February 2009, Official Report, Col. 707W; and the £6,614 bills revealed at 13 September 2011, Official Report, Col. 1093W.

Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals: Correspondence

Richard Fuller: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the timeliness of the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals in responding to correspondence from hon. and Rt hon. members.

Jeremy Quin: The Honours and Appointments Secretariat in the Cabinet Office provides administrative support to the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals (HD Committee) including processing correspondence to the Committee from members of the public and Hon. and Rt Hon. members.The department has guidelines on dealing with correspondence and endeavours to process correspondence as promptly as possible within these guidelines.

Dominic Raab

Catherine West: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister was aware of bullying allegations made against the Rt hon. Member for Esher and Walton before appointing him to the roles of Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Justice.

Jeremy Quin: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given by the Prime Minister at Prime Minister’s Questions on 1 February 2023, Official Report, Columns 335-336.

Department for International Trade

Drugs: Exports

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps she is taking to support exports of pharmaceutical products produced in the UK.

Nigel Huddleston: Pharmaceuticals are one of the UK’s top exports, valued at £20.3 billion in 2021, employing more than 136,000 people with a turnover of £64.2 billion. In line with the Export Strategy’s 12-point plan and as set out in the Board of Trade report on Life Sciences, the Department pursues an ambitious, targeted and strategic approach to promoting exports. This includes addressing market barriers, global defence of free trade, running novel innovation challenges, publishing targeted international sector-specific propositions and delivering focused export campaigns. These initiatives have been and continue to successfully showcase the UK's pharmaceutical national strengths to international audiences.

Women and Equalities

Period Poverty

Paula Barker: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent steps the Government has taken to help tackle period poverty in England.

Paula Barker: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what assessment the UK Government has made of the potential merits of the Scottish Parliament's decision to provide sanitary products free of charge; and if she would make it her policy to adopt a similar initiative in England.

Maria Caulfield: This Government takes the issue of period poverty very seriously and we are already taking steps to ensure that period products are available and affordable for those most in need.Since January 2020, a Department for Education scheme provides free period products in schools and 16-19 education institutions in England. 97% of secondary schools, 92% of post-16 organisations and 68% of primary schools have made at least one order since the scheme began in January 2020.In March 2019 NHS England announced that it would offer period products to every hospital patient who needs them (including long-term in-patients).As part of our wider strategy to make period products affordable and available for all women, we have also made it clear that a zero rate of VAT applies to period products now that the UK has left the EU. These products are essential so it is right that there is now no VAT charge.

Employment: Sex Discrimination

Nick Fletcher: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether she has had recent discussions with the Equalities and Human Rights Commission on the provision of guidance on when employers can legally restrict certain job vacancies by sex.

Maria Caulfield: The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Codes of Practice on Employment and guidance on sex discrimination cover the exceptions in the Equality Act 2010 which mean in certain circumstances, it is lawful for an employer to require a job applicant or worker to have a particular protected characteristic (e.g. sex), provided certain statutory conditions are met.Codes of Practice on Employment can be found here (Chapter 13): https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/sites/default/files/employercode.pdfGuidance on Job Advertising can be found here: https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/sites/default/files/ehrc_advertising_-_equality_law_12.pdfand here: https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/sites/default/files/advertising_-_faq.pdfThere are no plans to produce new guidance in this area, but EHRC keeps all its guidance under review.